This invention relates to portable, flexible, collapsible containers in the nature of trash barrels, and more particularly, those containers which are light in weight, wear resistant, and sufficiently collapsible to fold into small volumes.
The collection and removal of waste paper, cans, bottles, and other materials generally called "trash" is a sufficiently large problem to warrant business organizations that specialize in such matters. In the normal business office there may be a cleaning organization which collects all the trash accumulated during the day's operation and removes it to a suitable place of disposal. Those who are collecting the trash from separate offices normally employ a large container (30-50 gal. in size) for this purpose. In some instances these containers are merely thin flexible plastic bags and in other instances are semi-rigid plastic or metal barrels. Flexible bags can be carried by hand until they are too bulky or too heavy to be conveniently moved about, while semi-rigid barrels are frequently moved on a wheeled cart or "dolly." In close quarters the flexible bag has the advantage of being able to be carried to the vicinity of each individual waste basket that must be emptied without fear of scratching or marring furniture or walls, but on the other hand, it is usually made of sufficiently fragile material that it is easily torn or ripped on sharp corners of desks or the like. The semi-rigid barrel is much more wear resistant than the flexible bag, but it can only be used in close quarters with care because of the possibility of scratching or marring furniture or walls as it is moved about on its cart. There is, therefore, a need for a trash container which incorporates the advantages of both of these types of containers and eliminates as many of the disadvantages as possible.
It is an object of this invention to provide a portable, collapsible container of flexible, wear resistant material. It is another object of this invention to provide a trash container which is so constructed that it will stand alone and yet can be readily collapsed to a very small volume. It is another object of this invention to provide a reusable flexible container which can be dragged along the floor with ease and without fear of tearing. Still other objects of this invention will appear in the more detailed description which follows.